My three favorite bands {and five favorite songs from each} when I feel blue

Happy feast of St. Isidore, farmer! If he were still on earth and lived around here I’m sure he’d be delighted with the downpour we’re having today!

So we all feel down, blue, even depressed sometimes. I won’t lie, I battle it considerably, sometimes one day in three. And it’s good to know the things that help you keep from going too far into that hole, and even help lift you out again. One thing that has a particular power for me, that I’ve been learning to turn to more when battling the blues, is music.

Now, to be clear, I don’t mean any music, or even any of the music I particularly love (because, as much as I love a really amazing sad song like Switchfoot’s Yesterdays, Jon Foreman’s Somebody’s Baby or Kina Grannis’ Birdsong, even I don’t have to think too hard to realize that’s not the best recipe for uplifting myself.)

I’m not sure if I’m crazy or weird, or if misery just loves company, but sometimes when I’m blue, singing or listening to a really sad song holds a certain appeal, almost a comfort to it. But that doesn’t really get me anywhere better. The same could be said for overly shallow, upbeat, happy-just-because music that doesn’t seem to acknowledge that there are people in the world who are sad–that kind of racket can be downright annoying, or just more depressing.

No, the kind of medicinal song to which I refer is both deep and light: encouraging, not because it disregards suffering, but meets you there and lifts you up. It shows that others know how you feel–but also helps you see that it won’t always be this way. It gives you a true sense of hope, positivity, and being loved. Speaking from experience, sometimes that song in and of itself is enough to get you back on your emotional feet.

So, as the rain drizzles outside, I thought it would be fun to share my three favorite bands (whose music stands with distinguished clarity above all the music I love. I love these guys) and also try to narrow down five songs from each band that I would recommend to others looking for a little inspiration in this all-too-depressed world, because they’ve helped me!

1. Switchfoot

You can see it in their faces–hope, encouragement…love!

So Switchfoot, hands down my favoritest, most-listened-to band, comes first. If you’re not familiar with this awesome group (which you probably are), you should be! They are skilled, unafraid, genre-defying and unflinchingly honest. They’re also just about the only band my whole family can enjoy listening to at once, which is saying a lot with the diverse tastes we have! I listen to them all the time–cooking, driving, exercising, fixing my hair. My tremendous respect and affection for them stems chiefly from the quality of their songwriting. They unite the best of both, too-seldom-united worlds in music: downright coolness and a pure message.

They’re definitely the hardest to narrow down to five songs that inspire me. Almost impossible…but I’ll try…

1. Where I Belong (from Vice Verses)
2. Burn out Bright (from Oh! Gravity)
3. Dare You To Move (from The Beautiful Letdown)
4. Wonderful Feeling (from Native Tongue)
5. Stars (from Nothing is Sound)

Trust me, there are so many more…but check them out and see for yourself!

2. For King & Country

These guys are seriously one of the best antidotes to a bad day. They are so cool–so irrepressible–so encouraging. These two talented Australian brothers are soaringly excited and energetic in their music, but have a real heart for those who are down–you can hear it clearly in so many songs. Call me whimsical, but when I listen to their music I feel like they love me. I’m willing to bet they do–because I know that’s why they do what they do.

Like my other two picks, they thrive off the sibling dynamic, which I think adds so much to any band. And, like Switchfoot, I’ve been blessed to see them myself in concert!

My top five Joel and Luke tunes for a down day:

1. Matter (from Run Wild. Live Free. Love Strong.)
2. Light it Up (from Crave)
3. Shoulders (from Run Wild. Live Free. Love Strong.)
4. It’s Not Over Yet (from Run Wild. Live Free. Love Strong.)
5. Never Give Up (from Burn the Ships)

3. Colony House

Last but not least, my newest favorite! My family saw Colony House, opening at a Switchfoot concert, earlier this year, and were really impressed with them. My younger sister especially went on and on about their music…and I’m not sure why it took me until very recently to really give them a try.

I haven’t listened as extensively to them yet as I have Switchfoot or For King & Country…but maybe that’s because I can’t get past listening to their first album over and over to try out the second! I really love their sound, writing, heart…it’s all there, even the brother dynamic! And I’m hoping to get a chance to see them live, too, when they come around again next year on their upcoming tour!

So here are their five!

1. Second Guessing Games (from Learning How to Love)
2. Waiting for My Time to Come (from Learning How to Love)
3. You & I (from Only the Lonely)
4. Roll with the Punches (from Learning How to Love)
5. Learning How to Love (from the same)

I really encourage you to check out these songs if and when you ever feel a little blue…I hope they uplift you like they do me!

Happy Feast Day, Blessed Karl!

“If everyone simply did his Christian duties, we would not have so much hate and misery in the world.”

-Blessed Karl I of Austria

Novena to St. Raphael begins today {pray for your future spouse!}

“Lonely and weary, deeply grieved by the separation and sorrows of earth, we feel the need of calling out to thee, and of pleading for the protection of thy wings, so that we may not be as strangers in the province of joy.”

The above words, from the “Angel of Happy Meetings Prayer” to St. Raphael (below) are some of the most comforting words in any prayer to me. After the example, and through the encouragement of my older sister (who is a great devotee of this holy archangel, and whose beautiful marriage is living proof of the power of his intercession), I pray this prayer every night, principally that my future husband will be protected and led to me by St. Raphael, and I to him, and that we will be joined in the Heart of Christ for the rest of our lives, unto Heaven.

“Dear St. Raphael, Angel of Happy Meetings, lead us by the hand towards those we are waiting for and those who are waiting for us. May all our movements, all their movements, be guided by thy light and transfigured by thy joy.”

If you know how it feels to wait…and wait…and wait for the one God made to be your soulmate one day, St. Raphael is the patron for you. He has taught me that, while the waiting and loneliness sometimes seem like almost more than I can take, there is also beauty, merit, and a very necessary growth in the waiting. He has also reminded me at times that, while the waiting may not get easier, it won’t last forever. I take so much comfort from knowing he is taking care of me (and future hubby) now, and will continue to keep us under his wings every step of the way.

As the traditional feast of St. Raphael is October 24th, today (the start of his novena) is a pretty exciting day for me; and I hope, if you are traveling the same slow road of patience with me, you’ll join me in invoking the Archangel of compassion and love for your future spouse and yourself! Patience is never easy…it’s the road less traveled, uphill, with your back to instant gratification, pride and selfishness; if you get right down to it, it’s the road of true adulthood instead of childishness. It’s the path of honesty to accept that we’re not entitled to what we desire, but can humbly trust that God will give us what we need when He sees it’s best–not because we deserve it, but because He loves us.

And, if we think about it honestly for a minute, it’s not like our need for patience is going to change, this side of the grave anyway. In fact, when my hopes of marriage are fulfilled, my need for that most necessary virtue is only likely to grow, exponentially. There will always be something to wait for, especially once I’ve irrevocably invested my heart in my husband and my children and their needs and desires. And, beyond that, I must always be in vigil for Heaven, the ultimate hope that we should all be yearning for, the dream that should make our whole earthly sojourn one sigh of hopeful patience.

So let’s not look to our own strength in trying to stay on the difficult but beautiful path of patience–let us turn to St. Raphael, through whom God rewarded the great patience of His faithful servant Tobit, the trust of young Tobias, the humility and faithful endurance of Sarah. And if you desire to be able to love and serve your future spouse right now, to protect and help them, what more powerful way can you possibly go about it than to pray and sacrifice for them, and entrust them to such a powerful patron?

Below I’ve included the Angel of Happy Meetings prayer, which I’ve found so comforting, and then a longer prayer, particularly for guidance in choosing a spouse, which I remember my sister introducing me to but haven’t read again in a long time. Both are really beautiful and deeply comforting, and I encourage you to take a look at them. May St. Raphael watch over you, and intercede for you powerfully before the throne of God!

“Prayer is good with fasting and alms, more than to lay up treasures of gold…When thou didst pray with tears…I offered thy prayer to the Lord.
And because thou wast acceptable to God, it was necessary that temptation should prove thee.
And now the Lord hath sent me to heal thee…
For I am the Angel Raphael, one of the seven who stand before the Lord.”
-Tob. 12

Angel of Happy Meetings Prayer

Dear St. Raphael, Angel of Happy Meetings, lead us by the hand towards those we are waiting for and those who are waiting for us. May all our movements, all their movements, be guided by thy light and transfigured by thy joy.

Angel guide of Tobias, lay the request we now address to thee at the feet of Him on Whose unveiled face thou art privileged to gaze. (Mention your request.) Lonely and weary, deeply grieved by the separation and sorrows of earth, we feel the need of calling out to thee and of pleading for the protection of thy wings so that we may not be as strangers in the province of joy.

Remember the weak, thou who art strong, whose home lies beyond the region of thunder, in a land that is always peaceful, always serene and bright with the resplendent glory of God. Amen.

 

Prayer to St. Raphael for the Wise Choice of a Marriage Partner

O Glorious St. Raphael, Patron and Lover of the Young, I call upon thee  and plead with thee for thy help. In all confidence I open my heart to thee, to beg thy guidance and assistance in the important task of planning my future. Obtain for me through thy intercession the light of God’s grace, so that I may decide wisely concerning the person who is to be my partner through life. O Angel of Happy Meetings, lead us by the hand to find each other. May all our movements be guided by thy light and transfigured by thy joy. As thou didst lead the young Tobias to Sara and opened up for him a new life of happiness with her in holy marriage, lead me to such a one whom in thine angelic wisdom thou dost judge best suited to be united with me in marriage.

St. Raphael, loving patron of those seeking a marriage partner, help me in this supreme decision of my life. Find for me as a helpmate in life that person whose character will reflect the traits of Jesus and Mary. May he(she) be upright, loyal, pure, sincere and noble, so that with united efforts and with chaste and unselfish love, we both may strive to perfect ourselves in soul and body, as well as the children it may please God to entrust to our care.

St. Raphael, Angel of chaste courtship, bless our friendship and our love, that sin may have no part in it. May our mutual love bind us so closely that our future home may ever be most like the home of the Holy Family of Nazareth. Offer thy prayers to God for both of us and obtain the blessing of God upon our marriage, as thou wert the herald of blessing for the marriage of Tobias and Sara.

St. Raphael, friend of the young, be thou my friend, for I shall always be thine. I desire to ever invoke thee in my needs. To thy special care I entrust the decision I am to make as to my future wife (husband). Direct me to the person with whom I can best cooperate in doing God’s Holy Will, with whom I can live in peace, love and harmony in this life and attain eternal joy in the next.  Amen.

A simple movement {thoughts on blogging}

It’s October…possibly my favorite month of the whole lovely year. It’s a cool day, but the sun just came out and I glimpse blue out my window. It’s one of those rare but kind of nice, slow days when, for one ailment or another, you really don’t feel up to doing much at all…and, coincidentally, don’t have much to do.

I realize I haven’t been doing too much blogging over the past several months…obviously I’m not the most disciplined writer…but, not long ago, a reminder from my grandmother about how much she enjoys my posts hinted to me that I ought to make a little more concentrated effort to keep this up.

Sometimes I wonder exactly why I blog. It’s easy for intentions and reasons to change with time–and especially as a young woman, for there to be about twenty of them all tangled together like spaghetti noodles, swimming in a sauce of emotions. It’s been easy at times to blog out of vanity–adding to the noise, speaking just because I feel like making my voice heard, and believe all these faceless people are listening, like I have something really important to say all the time. It’s also easy in times of loneliness to blog because it makes me feel that, when I see ‘likes’ popping up on my latest post, I’m listened to, agreed with, and valued.

The simple reality is, I don’t really have people hanging on my every word…and it’s probably better that I don’t because I’ve said and written many more useless words than worthwhile ones. And even when the few people who do read what I write out here (other than people I really know, like my grandmother), ‘like’ a post, I’m not really connecting with them in a relationship, the way people were created to. I can just feed off flattery, if you get right down to it. This digital network promises to ‘connect’ me to countless others, but most of the time, that promise proves pretty empty when I follow its siren song looking for companionship and love.

We’re all lonely. But let’s face it, folks…social media isn’t the cure for that loneliness. Rather it is very, scarily, capable of distancing us from real relationships with those right around us…those we might notice if we weren’t absorbed in our screens…and, most importantly, with the God always waiting for our attention.

I believe that a lot of good can come from blogging. But, like any other form of social media, there’s also a lot of danger in it. When you’re spewing your thoughts at a faceless crowd somewhere in digital oblivion, and not people who know you, love you, and keep you real, it’s all too easy to slip from writing to exalt the truth into writing to exalt yourself…from a desire to inspire into a subtle channel for bragging…from a desire to comfort others by sharing your hard times to an excuse to complain…from a desire to be honest into sometimes talking too much about yourself. In a world that says we need to express ourselves in our art, it’s difficult to remember sometimes that true art is supposed be an expression of something far greater than just us–a small expression, never sufficient, of Truth and Beauty Himself.

To say all that more simply, there’s danger when, as I so often have, I let the motive of writing for God’s glory alone get tangled up with many other lesser motives that somehow benefit me. With God, it’s all or nothing…there is no serving two masters, right?

 Just a couple of days ago was the anniversary of the death of Venerable Carlo Acutis, who will one day, I’m sure, be the patron of those who do anything with computers. He was a genius when it came to computers…but his spiritual genius outshone the rest of his amazing qualities.

A thought Carlo once wrote in a journal seems to sum up what I’ve been trying to say all this time:

“Sadness is the gaze turned towards oneself,
happiness is the gaze turned towards God.
Conversion is nothing but moving the gaze from the bottom to the top. A simple movement of the eyes is enough.”

What I’m slowly learning, Carlo, with all his talents that far surpass mine, knew already at a younger age. There is no happiness for us in anything except the face of God–and we cannot share our focus with anything else–we must always, in the eye of our soul, through every part of our lives, gaze upon God. Is that not what Heaven will be? If we could glimpse Heaven here, in every moment of our lives, in every word we may right, would we choose to?

It’s always easier to correct the external than the internal. It would be just like me to come to all this and react by never writing anything except about God specifically…but I don’t think the point Carlo is making leads there. That simple movement means that this heart and mind of mine, behind the writing, must always be turned towards God, so that every word is not just a word, or some restless expression of myself, or a plea for empty attention…but an act of love that always knows it is not enough, so will never stop trying to be more. A humble effort to glorify Truth and Beauty…the Eternal Word…in whose image and likeness we were made…without Whom nothing was made.

So I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’m not sitting here writing this to impress you–not anymore. I refuse to write so you can know all about me, to be just one more distraction in this all-too-distracting world, just one more voice in the cacophony. (As an old Switchfoot song begs the listener, ‘If we’re adding to the noise, turn off this song!’) I’m not writing it to make myself feel better about what I have by bragging, thinking someone somewhere must wish they had my life. I’m no longer writing to make myself feel less alone–because, after all, I know I’m very loved; plus, we all need to feel lonely sometimes to find the only One who can fill our deepest longings.

So I’m making two commitments for this blog, here and now–I’m going to write with a little more discipline, and do it with purer motives. When I sit down to write with something true to say, I’ll pray to say it humbly and well, to serve the truth rather than use it. When I come with a joy I want to express, I’ll try to draw your mind to the Giver instead of just the gift. When I come with a lonely ache in my throat, I’ll remind myself of those who really love me…like my grandmother…and also about who you might be, and the loneliness and struggles you might have, that I’m not capable of fixing. And I’ll pray you find real companionship in the Faithful Friend who is always at your side. Who dwells, not in the Internet, not in the world’s noise, but in our souls. In quiet, and solitude, and the heart that is humble enough to realize it needs Him more than anything, and Him alone.

I love October because…

…there are simply so many feasts of my favorite people in Heaven throughout this month! One is already past; yesterday, October 3rd, was the old calendar feast of St. Therese of Lisiuex, my dear Confirmation patroness. I must admit that I completely blew off praying her novena this year because…in the midst of starting the St. Denis Novena and the busyness of life, I forgot…

But, counting on the never-begrudging, unconditional love I’ve learned I can expect from this dear sister in Heaven–perhaps the very trademark virtue of the Little Flower–, I boldly asked her (yesterday) to send me a rose anyway, hoping for a consolation and reassurance in the many uncertainties, discernments, and dangers of life. And, of course, she didn’t let me down…the first rose came in the form of a letter from a dear friend, who had been markedly on my mind over the past few days. I formed a special bond with this lovely young lady while we were both discerning for a week at Ephesus, and her bright and cheerful nature carried me through that week in many ways, and has since in continuing friendship often brought a needed smile to my face. The envelope carrying her letter to me yesterday was covered in roses!

As if that wasn’t enough, later on in the afternoon I happened to start doing a little research online on Blessed Emperor Karl and Servant of God Empress Zita (whose feast is approaching later this month!), and almost immediately my eyes were drawn to this picture (I had seen a cropped version of it before, which I quite loved, but never the full thing…and guess what were clustered near Blessed Karl’s hand…)

If I wasn’t already convicted of the intimate reality of the Communion of Saints (which I was), I was strong reaffirmed in the sense that they all work together for our good up there! That, and the fact that St. Therese certainly doesn’t hold grudges anymore now than she did on earth! I promise I’ll make a novena to you soon, dear!

So anyway, before any more feasts slip me by, I wanted to make a post to commemorate and prepare for the holy days of so many of my dear friends in Heaven this month. And happy feast of St. Francis of Assisi today!

St. Dionysius (Denis), Holy Helper

Feast: October 9th (along with companions Rusticus and Eleutherius)

St. Dionysius was, among many other things in his long and venerable life, a great missionary, and his biography and novena by Fr. Hammer in The Fourteen Holy Helpers point constantly to the virtue of faith. For me he is the perfect recourse in praying for others, especially loved ones in need of conversions, to receive the gift of faith–and for my own faith to be bolstered to the point of embracing martyrdom for it as he did.
St. Denis, pray for us!

Venerable Carlo Acutis

Anniversary of death: October 12th

Have I ever mentioned that I’m in love with this amazing, holy soul, and have been ever since we met five years ago? Yes, I know I’ve written about that already, but I invoke dear Carlo not only every time I have a computer issue, but also for the grace of both living my youth with as much holiness as possible, as well as the grace of discerning, reaching, and living out my vocation with the charity his generous heart held in contemplating the priesthood before his death at fifteen.

Apart from being incredibly holy and inspiring, really cute, and entirely lovable, this guy also has some of the best quotes of anyone I’ve read. The one above was one I’d never read before, though, until I stumbled across it yesterday. Just love it!

Blessed Emperor Karl and Servant of God Empress Zita

Feast Day: October 21st (The anniversary of their wedding)

This holy couple consoles me to no end since they took me by the hand and invited me to ask them to take myself and my future husband under their special patronage, individually and together, and to orchestrate every part of our meeting, falling in love, marriage, (God-willing) parenthood, and lead us to sainthood with them. Looking at pictures of them smiling fills me with comfort. I know my future soul mate and I are in good hands!

St. Raphael, Archangel

Feast Day: October 24th

Speaking of consolations, and my future husband…it just can’t be a coincidence that our most special patrons have feasts only a few days apart…I just can’t wait to celebrate the feast of this most tender Archangel this month, and honor him for his loving care and intercession!

Blessed Chiara Luce Badano

Feast Day: October 29th

Another beloved sister in Heaven is celebrated this month! Blessed Chiara has reached my heart in such a special way, and, much like Ven. Carlo, inspires me to live out this time of life with as much virtue and zeal and joy in the present as I can, while entrusting my future wholly to God. She is also such an utterly amazing example of embracing suffering and death, which we all must face at some point, and of surrendering oneself wholly to Divine Charity. Blessed Chiara, pray for us!

May these and all our holy helpers in Heaven, most especially Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for us! Happy October!